NIT Bracket The Wolverines are out, but check nline to see how the rest of the NIT is shaking out. P S "ntihigandaily.com/sports THURSDAY MARCH 23, 2000 5a MARCH 23. 2000 5A -- - - - - 'w a a .Freshmen yearn for NCAA ring r_" Duprev'S Congratulations to. Bill Davidson, opens up lanes for Brian Cardinal and --, By Stephanie Offen Daily Sports Editor The difference in their reactions could be seen in their eyes. For senior captain Sean Peach, this week is about preparation - his Hock solemn tone and 1. Straight glare show his / intensity. g On the other hand, fresh- man John Shouneyia's reac- tion to the mention of a national championship for his year's Michigan hockey team ook on a completely different tone. His eyes lit up at the mere thought of wearing a national championship ring around his finger in two short weeks. "Two classes have national cham- pionship rings," Shouneyia said. "It would be great for the two other classes to have one too." Each junior and senior on this year's squad proudly wears the ring e earned when the Wolverines won he national championship two sea- sons ago. "It's something you see them wear and you know it's a lot more then just a ring on their finger," freshman Mike Cammalleri said. "But they gave us some insight on what it takes, and it takes a lot. We're just going to put our efforts forth and do what it takes to get one of those for Ourselves." The upperclassmen have used this season's most impressive victories to show the freshmen how they must play in their first NCAA Tournament. Michigan's two regular-season wins over Michigan State and the 4- I win over current No. 1 Wisconsin are used as examples to remind the freshmen what led to their success in igh-intensity situations. "They tell us (the NCAAs are) a whole different game," Shouneyia said. "It's as intense as either one of the best games we played. It's actual- ly higher intensity than that. I, To Everyone has to play their best in all aspects of the game." Peach has been fielding questions all week about how it feels to play in the higher-level game. "They ask me and we told them what it takes to win," ' Peach said. "You have to do all the little things right. Hopefully it can be this year for them, but if not, they have some other years to try N m to get a championship." iurnament This year's large freshman class seems to know exact- ly how to do those little things. In each of those high-intensity games it was a freshman that sealed the game for the Wolverines. This season, the seven newcomers contributed almost one-third of the team's points. But even with those impressive statistics, Michigan coach Red Berenson is not expecting the NCAA rookies to be responsible for taking this team to Providence. "Our freshmen shouldn't have to lead our team," Berenson said. "The pressure is really on our upperclass- men. But the freshmen still need to contribute and they've done that all year. They're playing with enough confidence and enough experience that they are ready for a weekend like this." Even though Berenson tried to alleviate some of the pressure, it is no secret that in Michigan's past trips to the NCAAs, it has been the freshmen who have stepped it up and led the team to victory. From Josh Langfeld's overtime goal in 1998 to Josh Blackburn's impressive play in net last season, freshmen have taken leadership roles in the Wolverines' postseason runs. And to continue the trend, this year's group of seven is ready for the chal- lenge. "I'm really excited and enthusias- tic about playing in that type of game because I know it will be a really intense and competitive fierce- checking war," Cammalleri said. owner of The Palace. This is what you've been waiting for - the chance to host elite events like the NCAA Tournament. Knowing the professional way in which Davidson does things, the NCAA will soon be begging for him to host every year. TODAY NCAA TOURNAMENT Midwest Michian Sate V.Syaaw 7:38 p.m. [n) StteN UCLA 955p West Greg McQuay inside, a bad day for Cornell is dooming to the Boilermakers. This is a risky pick. Gonzaga could go cold at any time and make prog- nosticators look foolish. Gonzaga 78, Purdue 74